The present invention relates to a fish stringer and, in particular, to a tangle free cord-type stringer including a removeable end stop and a wader or belt mounted stringer retainer.
Numerous varieties of captured fish retainers have been developed over the years. Some of the most rudimentary comprise a branch or other piece of sturdy vegetation which is threaded through the gills or lips of one or more fish to retain the fish along the branch. One or more of the side branches can be trimmed to provide an end stop to prevent the fish from sliding off the main stem. A short length of rope may also be substituted for a willow branch.
A mainstay stringer construction comprises a length of cording, such as rope, which includes a rigid threading needle that is attached to one end and a looped eyelet that is secured to an opposite end. With the mounting of a first fish to the stringer and the looping of the cord through the eyelet, the first fish secured to the stringer becomes an end stop. Subsequent fish are merely attached via a threading of the needle through the gills or lips of the fish.
Two principal shortcomings of the above stringer arise during use from a tangling or twisting of the cord member as the fish trail from either the fisherman or a boat. That is, ones of the live fish may swim about or normal movements of the fisherman or currents can induce a twisting or tangling of the cord member which can aggravate the fisherman adding additional fish to the stringer or when unstringing the fish.
A further shortcoming in that upon release of the fish from the stringer, it is necessary to reverse the stringing process to sequentially release each of the retained fish. Once the last fish is reached, the stringer must be released from the eyelet. The latter process can be time consuming. Due to the necessity of handling of each of the fish, the fisherman may also sustain injury from the gill plates and pointed fins of the fish, especially if the cord has become twisted.
Preferably, therefore a stringer is desired having a construction which is twist-free and non-snarling and which releases any strong fish without separate handling. Ideally the fish should be releasable with a simple jerk, upon releasing an end stop.
Varieties of improvements have been made to the basic cord stringer over the years. Some assemblies provide a number of slide mounted retainers which mount along the cording and which separately secure individual fish, one example is shown at U.S. Pat. No. 3,893,605. The retainers of the latter reference are able to separately rotate about the cording member. Other retainers are known which include swivels with each retainer. Fish removal, however, still requires a separate handling of each fish.
Varieties of brackets have also been developed for use with cord stringers. Such brackets may mount to the fisherman, such as along a belt, to a boat or to a ground stake, depending upon the fishing circumstance. Various of these devices are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,332,121; 4,570,836; 4,830,244; 4,960,231; 5,025,587; and 5,078,310.
Other cord stringer constructions which exhibit improved end stops are disclosed at U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,371,830; 3,540,637; and 4,976,382. The U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,371,830 and 3,540,673 particularly provide stringers which include adjustable or re-positionable end stops of differing degrees of sophistication.
None of the foregoing stringers provide a twist-free cord or a low cost end stop which is easily adjusted during fishing and which may be easily removed, prior to fish cleaning, to release the fish from the stringer. Nor do any stringers include a swivel integrated into the cording member.